In amusement park rides, integrated audio and visual effects can be implemented to enhance attractions or scenes within the ride. In some applications, head, face, and other components of animatronic figures have been developed that combine one or more projection systems with silicone or other appropriate skin materials to implement animated, still, coordinated, and/or sequential visual effects. U.S. Pat. No. 8,256,904 entitled “Rear Projected Expressive Head” filed on May 23, 2008, and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, discloses examples of these types of systems. Projection systems also may be implemented to instruct patrons of the amusement parks regarding safety, emergency, or other informational signage.
However, the demand on such projection systems can be high as amusement parks typically operate on strenuous schedules. For example, some amusement parks operate for 365 days a year for fifteen to twenty hours a day. Additionally, the operating environment for these projectors can be harsh since many amusement rides may use changes in environmental conditions to enhance the experience, as well as having thousands of visitors travel through the attractions, both of which can result in dirt, debris, heat, fluids, moisture, and the like, affecting the performance of the projectors. Image and video projectors are usually not designed to operate on such demanding schedules or in such environments and may fail under such conditions. When a projector fails, the entire attraction may have to be shut down to allow the projector or component to be repaired, since the projection may form a main portion of the attraction. In addition to causing components to fail, the dust, dirt, and other particles may accumulate over time on the lens of the projector, causing the projected image to be distorted or occluded, requiring manual intervention to clean and repair the projector.
Further, in attractions or entertainment features having rear-projected faces of animatronic figures, such as those discussed in the above-referenced U.S. Pat. No. 8,256,904, when a projection system fails, the figure may have an undesirable appearance as the skin material may be a blank three dimensional form when not illuminated. Accordingly, in these instances the attraction may have to be shut down to allow either repair of the projector or for a technician to place a mask over the face of the figure.
Patrons to amusement park rides may have limited opportunities to attend amusement parks, so ride and attraction failures, even if brief, can be detrimental to the overall customer experience. Accordingly, there is a need for a reliable, automatic backup system that reduces the need for manual intervention, attraction downtime, and can maintain a desirable experience during failure of a projection system.